When You’re Ready to Scale, Hire for Impact: A Performance-Based Talent Strategy
At some point, every growth-minded business reaches a crossroads.
You've got a solid foundation. You’ve defined your vision. You’ve organized your people. Now you're ready to scale—but that next level will require something more: better talent.
Not just more employees. Not just experienced ones.
But high performers—those capable of helping you break through the plateau and elevate your company to its fullest potential.
Core Contributors vs. High Performers
Don’t get me wrong: core contributors are critical.
They show up, do the work, follow the process, and keep things running. Most employees fall into this category—and your company wouldn't function without them.
But when it's time to scale, it's time to get more intentional about hiring people who elevate the business.
These are the high performers. And if you want to find them—and pay them appropriately—you need to stop hiring based only on tenure or titles and start hiring based on performance traits and direct capability.
The Resume Test: What You Did vs. What You Do
If you're ready to level up your workforce, it's time to look at resumes through a sharper lens.
Too many candidates submit resumes that simply restate their position description:
“Oversaw people.”
“Filed TPS reports with a cover sheet.”
“Collaborated with other departments.”
That tells you what they did at your job every day. It doesn’t tell you what they did, and how they made it better.
As a company owner, you're not just looking for someone to do the same job in the same way. You want to know:
What did you accomplish?
How did you go above and beyond?
What are you most proud of in your previous roles?
How did your presence elevate the company, the team, or the process?
That’s the real difference between a core contributor and a high performer.
A high performer’s resume is more than a list of responsibilities—it’s a highlight reel. It tells a story of improvement, initiative, and impact.
And that’s what should get you excited as a CEO who wants to elevate his or her company.
Not just someone who can do the job—but someone who will help you do it better.
A Performance-Based Hiring Framework
At On the Floor Consulting, we recommend a structured framework to assess new candidates not just on what they’ve done, but how they’ve done it—and how they’ll perform for you.
Here's how it works:
Part 1: Applicable Skills Over Tenure
Domain Fit: Have they worked on the same systems?
Transferability: How much training will they need to be independently productive?
Ramp-Up Time: Will they be a multiplier—or a slow starter?
Part 2: High Performance Traits
Proactivity
Results-Focused Thinking
Growth Mindset
Customer-Centric Thinking
These are the game changers:
Ownership Mentality
Continuous Improvement Mindset
Adaptability
Team Elevation
Reliability & Professionalism
If a candidate demonstrates these in their behavior, past accomplishments, and interview responses, they’re worth more—because they’ll deliver more.
"When you need something done quickly or done well, give it to a busy person."
We all know that person. That’s the high performer. They don’t just show up—they step up. They get it done. They raise the bar.
When a candidate counters with a wage expectation that doesn’t match their actual fit or impact potential, you now have a clear, defensible rationale for your offer—and a path for them to earn more by growing into Tier 1 performance.
Scaling Means Raising the Bar
Hiring isn’t just about filling a seat—it’s about fueling your next phase of growth.
So as you scale, don’t settle for “good enough.”
Be intentional. Be selective. Use a framework.
Because when you fill your bench with people who elevate the work, the team, and the mission, your company won’t just grow.
It will accelerate.
Scaling Starts with the Right People
Let’s build your performance-based
hiring strategy!
or message me on LinkedIn to start
the conversation.